Work Licences

Have you been charged with drink driving or driving with drugs in your system?ORAre you about to lose your licence due to demerit point suspension?ANDDo you need your licence for work?

You may be eligible to apply for a work licence to allow you to drive to and from your workplace and/or to drive as part of your work duties between certain hours on certain days.

Drink/Drug Driving Am I eligible?

You must hold an Open Drivers LicenceProvisional and Learners cannot apply

You must intend on pleading guilty to low range (>0.05% BAC) or mid range (>0.10% BAC) drink driving.You cannot apply for a work licence if you are charged with High Range (.15% BAC) drink driving.

You can also apply for a work licence if you are charged with driving with a prescribed drug (cannabis, ecstasy or ice) in your saliva or blood.You cannot apply for a work licence if you are charged with the more serious charge of driving under the influence of drugs.

You can also apply for a work licence if you were charged with failing to supply a sample of breath roadside (but not at the station).

You have not been convicted of dangerous driving or a drink/drug driving offence in Queensland or another State in the past 5 years.

You have not had your licence suspended or disqualified in the past 5 years due to traffic infringements. (NB: If your licence was disqualified by SPER you can still apply).

You were not driving for work at the time you were charged with drink/drug driving.

You must apply for a work licence at the time that you plead guilty to the drink/drug driving offence. You cannot go back to Court at a later date and apply for a work licence after you have already been sentenced and received your penalty.

If you meet the above criteria then you are eligible to apply for a work licence but this does not necessarily mean that the Magistrate will grant your Application for a Work Licence.

The Magistrate will need to be satisfied of the following:

You are a “fit and proper” person to hold a work licence

You will lose your job or income without a driver’s licence

As a consequence, you or your family will suffer extreme financial hardship

Accordingly, very specific information is required to be presented to the Magistrate before you will be granted a work licence. This includes a precise and detailed affidavit in relation to your personal circumstances, finances and employment. In most cases you are required to provide an affidavit from your employer which is also required to contain certain information by law. This is why it is crucial that you consult one of our lawyers to assist you in preparing your Application and supporting Affidavits and so that we can make submissions to the Magistrate on the day of the hearing. There is too much at stake, don’t risk missing out on a work licence and having a lengthy suspension, consult one of our lawyers at Adams Wilson today.

If you are charged with drink driving but are ineligible to apply for a work licence. One of our lawyers can still represent you and make relevant submissions to the Magistrate to mitigate your suspension and fine.

Is your Licence about to be suspended due to demerit points or speeding?

You can apply for a Special Hardship Order for a restricted licence if:

You have lost more than one demerit point during a 12 month good behaviour period OR

You have been charged with driving 40 kph above the speed limitAND

You need your licence for Work, Study or another Special Reason (such as medical appointments).

You will only be eligible for Special Hardship Order if:

You hold a Queensland Open or Provisional Drivers Licence.

In the past 5 years, you have not been:

Convicted of Dangerous Driving

Had your driver’s licence suspended or cancelled

Been disqualified from holding a drivers licence

You must apply for a Special Hardship Order within 21 days from your licence being suspended.

Even if you have met the above criteria there is no guarantee that the Magistrate will grant you a special hardship order to allow you to be issued with a restricted licence. The Magistrate will need to be satisfied:

You are a “fit and proper” person to be driving AND

You will lose your job or income if you are unable to drive AND you or your family will suffer extreme financial hardship. ORYou need to drive for a reason other than work AND you or your family will suffer some other severe and unusual hardship other than financial.

Given that the process of applying for a work licence can be quite technical and unexpectedly complicated due to the precise information required to be put before the court. People who attempt to self represent themselves can become frustrated with having to come back to Court for multiple adjournments if information is missing from their affidavit or other legal requirements have not been met. So too the Magistrate can be required to dismiss an Application for a work licence if they feel reasonable time has been allowed for that information to be provided or your application is not persuasive enough. And once the Magistrate has made a decision, the decision is final; you cannot come back to Court again to re-apply.

It’s not worth risking your livelihood by trying to save money representing yourself. At Adams Wilson we are experienced in obtaining work licences; we get things right the first time and ensure our clients have a smooth transition through the court system and are immediately back to work.

Don’t let your application for a work licence become un-necessarily arduous and time consuming; make an appointment to see our Lawyers from Adams Wilson, today.